Nanotechnology, or nano science, refers to the research and development of an applied science at the atomic, molecular, or macromolecular levels (i.e., molecular engineering, manufacturing).
The prefix ‘‘nano’’ is defined as a unit of measurement in which the characteristic dimension is one billionth of a unit. Although the nano scale is small in size, its potential is vast.
As nanotechnology expands in other fields, clinicians, scientists, and manufacturers are working to discover the uses and advances in biomedical sciences. Applications of nanotechnology in medical and dental fields have only approached the horizon with opportunities and possibilities for the future that can only be limited by our imagination.
Here, we present a dynamic view of dental tissues, an adoption of which may lead to finer, more effective and minimally invasive reparation approaches. By doing so, we aim at providing insights into some of the breakthroughs relevant to understanding the genesis of dental tissues at the nano structural level or generating dental materials with nanoscale critical boundaries.
This paper provides an early glimpse of nanotechnology applications in oral medicine and dentistry to illustrate their potentially far-reaching impacts on clinical practice. It also narrates the safety issues concerning nanotechnology applications
Keywords: Dentistry; Nanomaterials; Nanoscience; Nanotechnology